William Penn coach Marc Benavidez
Off to a 5-0 start and with their highest national ranking since 2016 William Penn faces a major test on Saturday when the 20th ranked Statesmen host top ranked and defending NAIA champion Grand View. Third year William Penn coach Marc Benavidez says added experience is a big part of their turnaround and that experience has showed up with games on the line. The Statesmen dominated the fourth quarter in a 24-13 win at 16th ranked Baker and followed that up with a 34-31 win over 12th ranked MidAmerica Nazarene.
“It is hard to understand where your guys are going to be when adversity hits and when it is a tough situation”, said Benavidez. “We have got older guys who have been through it and had to overcome some adverse situations and it makes it a lot easier as a program to push through.”
The challenge this week is a big one. Grand View enters riding a 64-game regular season winning streak and Benavidez says the Vikings consistently dominate the line of scrimmage and limit mistakes.
“We have got to make sure we are worried about ourselves and are focused”, added Benavidez. “Grand View is consistently the best of the best and we have got to do everything we can to show up, execute and compete.”